Why are the comments on youtube exponentially dumber than comments on any other website?
I read a lot of interactive websites with comment spaces and commenters, and I have never seen any website on which the stupidity of the comments even comes close to that of the comments of youtube. I can’t think of anything unique about youtube users that would cause this, as everyone I know uses youtube, and I’d imagine that the users of youtube represent a fair cross section of internet users. Can anyone reasonably explain why all of the comments on videos are so much dumber than comments on anything else, anywhere on the internet?
(P.S. This recent article on The Onion does a nice job of poking fun of the nature of such comments.)
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8 Answers
because it’s full of young idiots kids that think they are cool etc.
I should say full of young teens.
Yes it’s annoying, not you probably can’t stop it because I so bet that they put in that they are much older in their stats than they really are.
Youtube is a site that appeals to a very large percentage of the online population. It’s easy to access, easy to use, anyone can use it (in theory), there’s music videos, funny animations, vlogs, drama, stories, etc. and so it attracts a lot of people. Because of the large number of people who visit the site there’s a larger number of dumb and stupid comments. There’s also a less of a community feel and so everyone is on the fringe of it all and because those who make videos seem like they can say what they want, others feel they can comment and say what they want.
Because of this I love the thumbs up/thumbs down system they have. It’s awesome to see a stupidly negative/dumb/obscene/messed up comment given the thumbs down so many times. :)
(Oh, I love the link by the way, awesome :) )
Because it’s cooooool to be an idiot! Check out most of the videos. Some do have their merits though. I’m not stoooopid enough to leave a comment there. But I am here!
“It’s a shame that stupidity isn’t painful!”
-a quote unlikely to have been penned by the person who gave us the proverbial…..
“Beauty is in the eye of the beer-holder”
Good question. Let’s paraphrase the great Peter Sellars: “They like to watch.”
Marina: ...like a train wreck that you can’t turn away from.
It’s easier to watch than it is to read.
Ha. I’ve often wondered the same thing. And on some videos, the comments don’t have anything to do with the video itself. Some videos have war comments about religion and race and that has nothing to do with the video.
The internet gives people a chance to act crazy and act like someone other than themselves. Having a username gives us a chance at anonymity. Therefore, since the username isn’t tied to our true names, it gives us the chance to act all crazy and stupid. Others won’t know who you are and in most cases, won’t be able to trace the comment back to you.
Oh yeah…and also because there are just some people who refuse to grow up.
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